I have a respect for firemen that goes way beyond the obligatory, thanks for your service mindset. I think some people just say stuff like that because that is what they are supposed to say. I wrote about what got me fascinated at what our fire departments do on a past blog. You can still read them over at my old blog. I wrote it in 3 parts.
Part I
Part II
Part III
This particular series of blogs still is my most read work to date. When I snapped this photo of an Avon Lake Firefighter at a live fire exercise, it took me back to Thanksgiving 1994. I had a dream about this fire the other night. There are still unanswered questions I have about the fire; some of the firefighters on scene that night have retired or moved on and the official report destroyed. I have a feeling the pursuit of finding the answers might haunt be for the rest of my life.
I remember that it was determined that the fire started in the furnace. It was a faulty furnace just like the one in the house we rented down the street and I remember going to the new occupants of that house and telling them to replace the furnace because it had problems when we lived there. Does that answer your questions??
ReplyDeleteNot even close. Which were the firemen transported to the hospital? Was it a flash over situation. Fire started upstairs, not sure of it was the furnace or what.
DeleteI don't recall any firemen being transported to the hospital. I recall most of them were standing around smoking cigarettes! We remarked about them smoking and why would they do such a thing when there was plenty of smoke from the fire. They weren't very frantically attacking the fire either as more comments from the crowds were "ALFD hasn't lost a foundation yet!" It seemed like forever before they hooked up the hoses and started dowsing the flames. The crowd seemed more worried about the fire spreading to the adjacent houses than the firemen were, as the siding on one of the houses began to melt. I'm sure these were NOT fair comments or observations by the crowd because there are procedures and protocols that must be followed in every emergency. There was no flash over situation, however as the fire spread to certain areas of the house there were flare ups, but no flashes. The fire started in the furnace and went upstairs right above the furnace. I recall you telling the firemen that there were pet birds in the living room and they saved them and you told them about live ammunition in the garage that could have been very dangerous. Other than the fire being a tragic loss to the family and a surprise when they got home, and some unusual excitement on the street on a Thanksgiving afternoon, I don't think there was anything overtly spectacular about it, like injured firemen or flash over, but to a young boy who was facinated and excited it probably seemed much more than it was and left a lasting "burning" impression.
DeleteHa ha, that's a great pun. The problem with the whole answer is, I interviewed 3 Avon lake firefighters that were in scene, and all something different.
DeleteFlash over isn't always an explosion, but the conditions were perfect for it. There were 2 firemen treated on scene for smoke and exhaustion, but it is unclear if they were confirmed transported. All the answers are in the official report that was destroyed.
Cheif Morris concluded that the fire was accidental but source was undetermined. Tried reaching out to the insurance company because they may have the report, but no one called me back.
It's never too late to persue a new career!
ReplyDeleteBelieve it or not, I did check into it. It is nearly impossible. Training to be a firefighter is 18 months full time. You'd have to be a paramedic too. You cannot be a fireman unless you take your first position by the age if 35
DeleteDoing the math, I would have to enroll in fire school now, and then immediatly into medic school. I would be done on 18 months, I will be 34 years old. Then I would have to get a job and they are scarce here in Ohio, and we've established I couldn't move.
So for the 18 months I was in school I can't work full time and I couldn't feed the kids.
Hopes and dreams can't feed my kids.
Your cousin became a volunteer fireman after the age of 35. Not sure if his time in the Navy had anything to do with that or not.
DeleteVery true, and it is only an 8 hour class to become a Firefighter I, which is a requirement for a volunteer firefighter. Only problem is that I don't live in near a jurisdiction that has a volunteer department to join.
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